You might have noticed up until now I have not mentioned anything about the Summer Olympic. This is because I have a very mix feeling about the game this year.
As a Chinese, I really should've been just proud and honored that the Olympic is hosted in Beijing this year. With the amount of discriminations against the Chinese culture by the Western world over the past 200 years (this is definitely an arguable point depends on where and when; however, it is still undeniable that only less than 100 years ago when signs like "No Chinese Or Dogs Allowed" were posted in some parks and outside of buildings in Europe) it is definitely the moment for the nation and the people to held their chin up high and be proud. Hence, even after the political movements towards Tibet; after the ridiculous list of not-allows issued by the Chinese government towards its citizens during the Olympic, after every non-humane things that has been done to make this 14 days a smooth event for China, I still rather not voice my true opinions about some of these issues. I know the game is a lot of people's dream; I don't want to be the person who spoils it. To say it bluntly, I just don't want to feel that I am going against my own heritage.
This morning, however, I read something in the news that I think it is absolutely outrageous, at least in my narrow-minded Westernized traitor opinion.
Original article by Timesonline:
The cute little girl whose sweet-voiced rendition of one of China’s favourite revolutionary anthems started off the Olympic opening ceremony performance may not have been all that she seemed. Little Lin Miaoke, it has been revealed, was only lip-synching.
Officials have now admitted that the voice that rang out through the vast Bird’s Nest stadium was really that of seven-year-old Yang Peiyi, who may have had the voice of an angel but whose crooked teeth made her unsuitable for the opening ceremony's top spot.
[...]
Chen Qigang, music director for the ceremony said in an online article: “Little Yang Peiyi’s failure to be selected was mainly because of her appearance, because we were concerned with the interests of the nation.”
It appeared that while the seven-year-old child's voice could not be faulted, her crooked teeth were not deemed suitable for a ceremony required to show a flawless China.
A flawless China means a 7-year old girl who got selected from tens and thousands of people be taken off the stage one day prior to the ceremony because her teeth is not perfect? I thought the theme of this year's Olympic is One World, One Dream? What about the dream of that little girl getting to sing in front of millions of viewers all around the world?
Don't get me wrong, I can understand things have to be marketable, like the fake firework footage in the opening ceremony. I think it's absolutely okay if the officials decided to select a "flawless" girl for the ceremony, as I highly doubt most employers only hire employees solely on their ability to perform anyway; yet, shouldn't they make that as the prerequisites instead of a last minute decision? I just couldn't imagine how sad that little girl felt after she got taken off the stage. And how about the other girl who now known as the lip-syncer? I am sure she will enjoy being called the Ashlee Simpsons evil twin for the rest of her life.
Furthermore, the whole obsess with flawlessness is absolutely absurd. The people in China thinks they have to proof to the world Beijing is a world-class city, hence everything has to be perfect and nothing can go wrong. However, the real problem with the rest of the world against China has always been about its government, which is ultimately responsible for issuing all the bans and restrictions to ensure everything is flawless. See the cycle there?
I am hurt. I am hurt to see that a supposedly wonderful scenario has so much underlying fundamental errors; I am hurt to think behind all those happy faces in China so many people are still being mistreated and they don't even know about it; I am hurt that I am a Chinese myself but I am powerless when it comes to helping my own people.